This study examined whether a peer-oriented practice of child-initiated storytelling and group story-acting, integrated as a regular component of the preschool curriculum, can serve as a powerful context for promoting the development of narrative skills and a broader range of decontextualized language skills in young children from low-income and otherwise disadvantaged backgrounds. This storytelling and story-acting practice (STSA) was introduced into one Head Start class of 3- to 5-year-olds for an entire school year, with a similar class in the same Head Start center serving as a control group. Results indicated that participation in the STSA significantly promoted the development of both narrative and productive vocabulary skills. These findings help corroborate the claim that young children’s narrative skills form part of an interconnected cluster of decontextualized oral language skills whose early mastery is a key foundation of emergent literacy. They also highlight the need for researchers to recognize that the social contexts promoting children’s learning and development are not exclusively restricted to adult-child interactions.
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2022. Individual differences in the effectiveness of a narrative-promoting intervention: Relation with executive function skills. First Language 42:4 ► pp. 523 ff.
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2020. Promoting narrative skills in 5- to 8-year-old French-speaking children: The effects of a short conversational intervention. First Language 40:3 ► pp. 225 ff.
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